Blood Stained Hands
by MLS1984
Summary: A first person novelization of the events of Silent Hill 3.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

This was not a good day to be me.

Oh, everything started out normal. In fact, everything was all peachy-keen. Nothing happened- as usual. But then, we got this call from the Daisy Villa Apartments. The old lady on the phone said that she had heard gunfire on the roof one night, and was frightened. The woman was about eighty-five, and in truth, nobody really believed her. However, we did send a uniform over... about two days later.

Which is about when the shit hit the proverbial fan.

He had found some pretty liberal blood splatters, and called us immediately.

We got there fast, and the CSU people started taking their samples.

"Captain Baker!" called one of the uniforms.

"The CSU guys want ya'."

I walked over to the group of blue-coat-clad techs. They were hunched over one of the larger smears. They didn't even seem aware of my presence.

Slightly offended, I barked. "_Well?_"

They jumped as a unit- and a woman stood up. She regarded me cooly. "Captain Baker?"

"Yeah, uhm..."

"Doctor Lynch."

I nodded. "You wanted to see me, Doctor Lynch?"

She blinked. "Yes. Look at this." She motioned to the smear.

"Yeah? So, what? It's a blood smear. Seen one, seen em' all."

"But, look at it. Doesn't it seem strange to you?" She asked. She looked at me like I was a retarded four-year-old.

I gave her a look. "It's blood."

"_No._" She stressed. "It's not just blood."

I was quickly tiring of the runaround. "Then stop diddy-bopping around your point- and make it!"

"The blood's black."

"What the hell kinda joke are you-"

"Captain!" Yelled a uniform.

"_What!_" I bellowed.

"You gotta see this!" He standing on the fire escape, and pointing down.

I walked over to the uniform, and looked to where he was pointing.

I found myself looking into a bedroom. Inside, a young blond woman, and an elderly man were standing somberly over a bed. They both looked like they went a couple rounds with a wolverine... and lost.

"Okay, they look like shit, but what is it I'm supposed to see?"

"A call just came in from that apartment. A girl called, saying that her father was dead."

Apparently, this was a mentally slow day for me, because all I could say was: "He looks okay to me." And I nodded to the old guy. "Wrong apartment."

"No, sir! I think her father's the guy on the bed!"

I sighed. Looking closer, I noticed that there was indeed something under the crisp, white sheets.

Something person shaped.

Something person shaped with dark stains over most of the torso.

"Hell." I muttered. "Let's go.

&&&&&&&&

At the Police Station...

After commandeering the girl, her elderly pal, and the poor, dead loser in that bedroom- the **really** weird shit began.

The body was identified as Harry Mason, an author of horror novels- ones that I've read, in fact. He'd been pretty good too. All that stuff about ghost towns and demonic cults were pretty creepy. The guy was- **had been**- pretty talented.

The girl had been identified as Cheryl Mason; Harry's second adopted daughter. She was seventeen. The first had... what the hell **had** happened to that one? Whatever had went on- he had named this daughter after his first Cheryl. Odd, but not terribly so.

The old guy was Douglas Cartland. A private investigator. The two of them had been pretty banged up when we found them, but he had looked like someone had taken a sledgehammer and just pounded the shit out of him. Although, he said that aside from a few broken ribs, the wounds were mostly superficial. So, wonderful people that we are, we didn't exactly give a second thought to keeping a banged-up old guy at a police station for hours.

Harry Mason, according to the medical examiner, had died from severe internal bleeding. But, I had seen the body. Somebody had eviscerated the bastard. His insides had been very much on the outside. A bad way to go.

The two of them were the prime suspects for awhile, but not long. However, the security cameras quickly exonerated the two of them. They hadn't been in the building when Mr. Mason had died.

But I'd bet my badge that they knew what had happened.

I decided to talk to Cheryl Mason myself. So, I entered my office, where I had left her.

She sat in my armchair. She took delicate sips from a can of fruit juice, and winced each time.

Now that I had a minute, I took a good look at the kid.

She was loaded with cuts and bruises on every exposed region of her body. Her clothes were ripped and spattered with blood. I noticed that she winced because her lip was split, and a violent purple bruise was forming around it. It looked painful.

I smiled. "Hello, Ms. Mason."

She gave me a feeble, exhausted grin in return. "Captain Baker."

"How are you?"

"Good, I suppose. All things considered. How's Douglas doing?" She was clearly worried about him.

"Mr. Cartland left. He said to tell you to call him. In fact, he gave me a note to give to you." I handed it to her, and she smiled gratefully at me.

She scanned the note, and smiled- obviously relieved. I heard her murmur, "Thank God."

"Ms. Mason."

She looked up at me. "Yes?"

"I was wondering... what happened the night your father... passed away." I prodded gently.

She dropped eye contact. She didn't say anything.

I went as quiet as possible. She knew something, all right. She may not have done it, but she knew what the fuck was going on...

"It's okay, you can tell me." I urged

"You won't believe me." she whispered.

I smiled. "You don't know until you try."

She gave me sad eyes. "It's insane, you'll think I'm insane."

She went quiet.

"Come on, honey. It's okay."

She looked at me, and sighed. "Fine. It all started when I fell asleep at the mall..."

**: AUTHOR'S NOTES : Since Literary Alchemist pointed out to me that this might come across as canon rape, (Thanks for letting me know about that! ;D ) Heather's telling this story AFTER she and Douglas returned from the Silent Hill 3 escapades!**

**READ AND REVIEW! **


	2. Surprise, Surprise

**Chapter 1: Surprise, Surprise**

_The sign above me read, "Lakeside Amusement Park."_

_**(Huh?)**_

_The place was encased in fog, and I couldn't see shit._

_Nervous, I started forward. I had a flashlight in my pocket, and it cast a comforting glow. Although, the range sucked. I couldn't see more than about three feet in front of me. It looked like it was about midnight._

_Slowly, I started to walk into what was clearly an old, abandoned amusement park. I took in the gaping holes in the ground, the rusted, metal grating-_

_-and a supremely creepy Robbie the Rabbit costume draped over a bench, as though it was just chillin'._

"_Where am I?" I muttered._

_I started forward, and realized that I was holding something in my hand._

_Looking down, I discovered that it was the box cutter that Dad was always encouraging me to carry around. It had weird, dark stains on it._

_I also had a noticeable amount of weight pressing against my back, and my hip. I checked, and found that I was also carrying a steel pipe, a handgun, and a submachine gun._

_**(What in the freaking, furry, FUCK- oh wait, I'm dreaming!)**_

_Minutes ago, I was in the mall, lounging in the Happy Burger, and all of a sudden I'm in a scary amusement park- and I'm armed to the teeth? Oh yeah, I'm just dreaming!_

_Strangely, a sort of morbid curiosity overcame me, and I wandered over to the costume. I noticed the liberal smears of dark fluid around the mouth._

_I squashed down the image of carnivorous pink bunnies. That was something I didn't need in my head._

_Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a set of double doors. Curious, I passed through them._

_My surroundings now included a run-down gift shop, and a bunch of other decaying boutiques._

_And a couple of strange, dog-like creatures. They look almost... **skinned**._

_Initially, I thought it was some sort of amusement park ploy._

_**(Hey, wait a minute, advertising... in a nightmare?)**_

_The things turned, and looked at me. Oh yeah, they were alive, all right._

_Then, to my horror, their heads split open down the middle; revealing more rows of sharp teeth than any dog had any business having._

_**(It's a dream- it's just a dream!)** I thought, shuddering._

_That's when the ugly fuckers decided to charge me._

"_Fuck!" I shrieked. Jerking out the handgun, I managed to get a couple of rounds into one as it leapt for me. The bullets slammed into it, knocking it aside. I sidestepped the other, and lunged for the gift shop._

_**(Please be open, please be open!)**_

_I noticed the sign with the ever present bunny. I jerked open the door, and dove inside._

_I slammed it closed behind me, and leaned against it._

_I looked up._

_That damnable rabbit was **everywhere.**_

_I remembered that Robby the Rabbit was an old cartoon from the eighties. They had old reruns on cable. Even before the one outside took to cannibalism, I had been unnerved by the thing. But, I had never known that he had an amusement park devoted to him. The creepy fucker._

_Okay, I so wasn't taking another step into this place. I took a deep breath, and ran back outside._

_I noticed an 'exit' sign, and dove for it. I also took note of a second sign; one that advertised the 'Mountain Coaster'. I rushed through that door._

_I saw more metal grating, and a rickety stairwell leading up to the roller coaster. I jogged up to it, and that was when I heard almost thunderous footsteps begin to pound behind me. _

_There was a terrified squeal, and I realized that it was me. I took off like a shot, and ran like hell for that staircase._

_A loud, almost painful shriek accompanied those footsteps. I ran faster._

_At the top of the stairs, I found that the place was empty. No one was in the office, and no cars were on the tracks._

_I now had two options. One, I could go back down the stairs and deal with whatever was making those noises._

_...Uhm, no!_

_Or two; hop on the tracks and go see where they lead._

_With a sigh, I hopped onto the tracks._

_The walk was nice and quiet for awhile; which my nerves greatly appreciated._

_Of course- within moments- a distinct clanging noise. The sound of metal on metal. It was accompanied with a sudden surge of terror on my part._

_A light was coming right at me. And I knew what the hell it was too._

_It was the roller coaster. And it was headed in my direction._

_I had just enough time to grunt, "Ah, **crap**." before the fucking thing plowed right into me._

I woke up with a start.

I looked around. I was in the Happy Burger, and it was empty. According to the clock, the mall was getting ready to close.

I shuddered, and then stretched.

"God, what a nightmare." I sighed.

I got up, and slumped out of the café. I had to make a call. Just outside the door I looked for a phone.

Thankfully, I noticed one within a couple of minutes. It was wedged into a corner, looking almost decorative.

I went over to it, and immediately dialed home; silently whining to my dad. I wouldn't be this tense if he got a cell phone.

Luckily, he was home. He even picked up on the first ring. He was a little weird that way. When he was home, he always dove for the phone when it rang. I teased him mercilessly about it- maybe he was waiting for Officer Cybil to call him.

The two of them had carried a bit of a torch for each other for as long as I could remember, but they never acted on it. They just made googly eyes at each other on the few occasions she stopped by. It was revolting.

"Mason residence." he chirped happily. Dad was obviously in a remarkably good mood. Weird.

I grinned. Dad was a bit of a dork- but he was a good dork. He had that kind of personality that you couldn't help but like.

"Dad? It's me."

"Hey, sweetheart!" he replied. I could hear the smile in his voice. Even as he tried to use his Serious Dad tone on me. Which **never **worked on me. "You're running mighty late, missy." he chided.

I squirmed, but didn't stop smiling. "Yeah. Sorry I didn't call sooner."

He laughed. "Don't worry about it, honey. You're seventeen. It's what seventeen year olds do. I guess you just lost track of time. You are a teenager., you know."

I chuckled quietly. "Yeah, I guess I was. Anyway, I'm coming home now." We both paused, and then I remembered something. "Oh. I didn't get that thing that you asked me to."

Dad sighed, and I felt a little guilty. But then, he laughed it off. "It's okay, kiddo. It can wait. My surprise is too important!" He was starting to sound giddy. Gross.

Dad had been like that all day. Before I had left that afternoon, he had told me- all excited- that he wanted me home by dinner. He said he had some big news. And that I had to buy a cake.

"Okay." I conceded.

"Hurry home. And take the train- it's faster!" He urged.

"Okay. I will."

"Love you, Baby Girl."

I smiled warmly. "I love you too, Dad." I hung up.

As I started to walk away, I noticed an elderly man in a trench coat- cliche much?- step out from behind a wall. He started to follow me.

After a dew minutes, he decided to open his mouth and let the bullshit flow.

"Heather." he said. How did this asshole know my name? "I need to speak with you. My name is Douglas Cartland. I'm a detective."

A detective, huh? I stopped, and gave him a cold look. "A detective? Really? Well, nice talking to you."

I started walking again. He started following me again. My stomach started to knot nervously, but I didn't let it show.

He tried to talk to me again. "Hold on. There's someone who wants to meet you. Just let me have an hour- no, half an hour of your time."

I stopped again. I turned, and looked him in the eye. In my best 'get lost' tone, I said. "My Daddy always told me never to talk to strangers. I secretly hoped he'd take the damned hint.

He didn't. "This is very important. It's about your birth."

Though I didn't know why, the knot in my stomach suddenly quadrupled. "I'm not interested." I replied tonelessly.

I kept walking. He kept following.

"Are you following me?" I yelled. "Do I have to scream?" Which is what I so wanted to do right now.

"Sorry." he said. He seemed genuinely contrite."I'll wait here."

Thank God. I entered the ladies' room.

It was quiet in there. Relieved, I walked in deeper.

I noticed a bit of graffiti on the mirror. It looked oddly familiar somehow... I stared at it, and looked away only when my head started to throb.

I thumbed the pendant around my neck. Dad had gotten it for me on one of my birthdays. I don't think that I've ever taken it off.

I checked the stalls. The first two opened, but the last was locked. Curious, I knocked.

Someone knocked back. I jumped.

"Okay..." I muttered. No hiding out in here. I looked around. I sure as shit wasn't going back out there to Detective Creepy.

"Yahtzee." I whispered. There was a good-sized, open window ahead of me. I climbed out of it.

I ended up in a back alley. I searched for a way out, but both ends were blocked. One end by a wall, the other by a big-ass van,

Dammit to hell.

Of course, that was when I noticed the door. Sighing in defeat, I entered.

It was a nondescript corridor- completely devoid of the good-natured capitalism going on deeper in the mall. I found it to be slightly unsettling.

I turned right, and walked ahead. A little bored, and anxious to get the hell out of there; I just kept following the corners until I reached a set of double doors.

**(Should I- or shouldn't?... Oh, what the hell...)** I passed through them.

"Wow, talk about nasty." I gaped.

I found myself in a sealed off portion of the mall. The floor was saturated with a great, heaping layer of-

-_blood-_

-mud. I walked around and just took in the mess for a minute or two.

I noticed something on the floor. It appeared to be a distinct trail- almost as though someone had walked through it.

**(Okay, maybe someone plodded through all the yuck- and that someone knows how to GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE!)**

I followed the trail, and it led to a half-closed.

A voice in my head suddenly yelled, **(No way- it's too weird! Don't go in!)**

I went in.

It was a clothing boutique. Quaint. It was obvious that the place had had a certain charm- but it had clearly seen better days. It seemed almost... tired.

And there was a handgun on the floor.

There was something almost ominous about it. It made me nervous.

But, I also felt somewhat compelled to take it. Which I did.

And, seemingly on cue, I began to hear wet, crunching noises.

**(What the hell?)**

I turned, and stared; transfixed.

Absurdly, I could only register the shop clerk's name tag; 'Janine'.

**(Cute...)**

She was wearing the remains of a common- but never really out of style- sundress. I could even see tiny, pale tulips through the...the... blood

And, and-

_**She had no skin.**_

I realized, as the nausea hit me, that the wet noises were coming from the creature hunched over her. It was gnawing on her; it's muzzle buried in her chest.

I had once been a maniac for those 'Autopsy' specials on cable. Hysterically, I knew what killed Janine.

**(Oh God- oh God! The dead don't bleed! Fuck! The dead don't bleed!)**

Poor Janine had been eaten alive.

It stopped gnawing on her, and turned to look at me.

Though 'look' may have been a comparative term. It didn't seem to have any eyes. Just a cylindrical, grinning mouth.

And it definitely wasn't human.

_Thud. Thud._

It was starting to advance toward me on it's equally strange, thick feet.

**(Crap! The handgun!) **I snatched it up, and pointed it at the monster.

"Stay back!" I warned.

_Thud. Thud._

"Stay the hell away from me!" I screamed. A note of hysteria slid into my voice.

_Thud. Thud._

I fired into it's face

I hit it dead on, too. I saw the puncture hole just above it's grinning mouth.

It kept coming. _Thud. Thud._

Never one to be a quitter, I kept firing as it advanced.

Suddenly- _click. Click. _

_My gun was empty!_

**(FUCK!)**

It lifted one of it's arms- clearly ready to smack the shit out of me, when-

-it promptly dropped dead.

"Crap." I squeaked.

I fought not to hyperventilate. It was a struggle to regain my composure. I leaned against the counter.

And hurled.

**: AUTHOR'S NOTES : I know, I know- low grade ending! But hey, I had to end it soon- the chapter was getting excessive. And yes, I know I took liberties by making her puke, and with the phone call- but lemme know if they were good liberties!**


	3. Shopping Maul?

**Chapter 2**

I stood up. Wiping my mouth, I looked down at the strange corpse.

"What the hell is this thing?" I muttered in disgust.

-_creeeeaaakk-_

Jerking to my feet, I whipped the handgun towards the noise.

_(What the hell good is that gonna do? It's **empty!**)_

I froze. Minutes passed, and nothing happened. False alarm.

Still skittish, I began to search the room. Hey, I found a handgun- who knows?

There was a display bench along the wall next to the cash register. Upon further inspection, I noticed two boxes of ammo where I'm sure some pretty, pretty sweaters might once have been.

"Yay." I whispered. With shaking hands, I reloaded the gun, and tucked the rest of the bullets (very gently!) into my vest.

Using the back exit, I ducked down the right corridor-

-Ooh! An elevator! I pushed the button-

-and got nothin'.

"Dammit." I snarled.

Directly across from it, I spotted a map of the mall stuck to the message board with shiny push-pins. Pissed, I snatched it off the wall. I glowered as I examined it. A red glow illuminated the paper.

Hey, wait a minute...

I looked at the sign above the door next to the elevator.

**Exit.** It said.

I felt myself start to blush as I opened the unlocked door. "I knew it was open. I totally did."

On the other side of the door was an interior stairwell. Not really thinking of anything else, I chose to ascend the stairwell to the second floor of the mall. I went through the door.

In the second floor corridor, I was surprised to see an odd, blue statue standing off to one side of the hallway. Curious, I began to walk up to it.

It was an odd shade of bluish-purple- like a bruise. It was loaded with deep red, and black veins. It had two spindly, almost wet looking legs. It also had a vaguely bullet-shaped torso that ended in a pointed tail. It also had no face whatsoever. I don't think it even had a mouth.

Inching up to it, I whispered. "Well, aren't you an ugly bastard?"

As I reached down to touch it, I heard an odd, groaning noise.

I yelped, and looked away.

Something slammed into me, and knocked me flat onto my ass.

Looking back, I saw that the creature was indeed alive. It was making that strange noise.

I skittered crab-like along the ground. I quickly got about eight feet away, and stopped.

The creature was staggering along at an almost snail-like pace. It was also fumbling... drunkenly down the hall.

_(Holy shit!)_ I thought in amazement. _(That thing's blind!)_

I went westward down the hall, totally ignoring the creature.

Upon seeing a door to my right, I opened it just a crack so that I could peer inside.

It was a storage room. Inside, one of the monstrous dogs from my dream appeared to be chewing contentedly on something.

Shutting the door, I took a deep breath.

_(Okay, Heather- there could be something good in there- you **need** to check it out!)_

Shuddering, I pulled out the handgun that I found in the boutique, and opened the door.

The second that I crossed into the room, the dog stopped chewing. It didn't look up yet, though.

Never having been one to dilly-dally, I shot the dog six times. It staggered about for a minute or two, growled softly, and dropped dead.

Curious, I walked over to what it had been gnawing on. It was a piece of beef jerky. In fact, there was a whole pack of the stuff just sitting on the nearby crate.

Hmm... I bet this stuff might come in handy when other things pop up.

(Yes, "when". I'm not dumb, I know there's probably more of those things around!)

As I started to leave the room, something sparkled into my eye. Tracing the source of the light, it led me to something metal that was under the crate.

It turned out to be a key. I tried to reach for it- but no dice. It was too out of my reach.

Sighing, I made a little note on my map that there was a key in here. As I started to leave, I became aware of the fact that that weird symbol I'd seen in the bathroom was stuck to the wall here, and-

**A child's voice echoed in my mind. "But, mommy- I want to stay with you!"**

**I smelled something burning... almost like cooking meat...**

I came back to myself with a start. _(What the hell...)_

I could feel the start of a migraine forming right behind my eyes, and strangely, the pit of my stomach gave a miserable roll. Shaking it off, I left the room and continued my way down the corridor. I found another door, but much to my chagrin, it was locked.

This meant only one thing...

With a long-suffering sigh, I turned back to the hallway with the blind lawn-gnome from hell.

It was still staggering blindly up and down the hallway. For a moment, I actually felt a little sorry for the thing. _(Boy, you really lost the evil coin-toss, huh?)_ I easily side-stepped it, and went through the door.

I found myself in a circular corridor. There were a few decent shops here. A bakery, a bookstore with a big, glass wall-

-and two of those large, cylindrical monsters.

They turned to my direction.

"Shit." I squeaked. I quickly looked for a way around them.

My gaze fell on the bookstore. It was the closest, and I could clearly see a backdoor inside. I lunged to it as fast as my legs could carry me.

As I jerked at the handle, the creatures began to lumber towards me.

The door I had entered through was blocked by one of them. _(Why isn't this door opening?)_

Then it hit me. It was locked.

My exit now effectively cut off, I began to run to each storefront, jerking and pulling each handle- only to find each door locked.

With a yip of fear, I slammed into the door of Helen's Bakery; fully expecting it to be locked too-

-and I fell into the shop. Still on an adrenaline high, I grabbed a display cart and shoved it against the door. I peered out the small window. The creatures were now seemingly wandering around aimlessly. It seemed as though when I left the room, they lost all interest in me. Sighing in relief, I slid to the floor and sat there for a few minutes, determined to catch my breath.

Oddly, the first thing that I noticed when I stood up was the amazingly clean, brand new set of tongs sparkling on the bakery counter. A closer look revealed a small scrap of plastic was still stuck to one side- as though it had just been opened... for me. But, why?

I stood there for a few minutes, contemplating it.

Then I remembered that damnable key. _(Hmmm...)_ I picked up the tongs, and contemplated them for awhile. _(What the hell- why not?)_

Tucking them into the waistband of my skirt, I took a deep breath, pushed the cart aside, and ducked out the door at a full run.

The creatures- much to my unending relief- were gamboling on the other side like giant, evil puppies. They started towards me, but away from the exit door. Laughing, I bypassed the monsters, and made my way back to the storage room.

Smirking, I pulled out the tongs, got on my hands and knees, and scooped that key up from under the crate.

"Yahtzee!" I cried happily. Then I noticed the tag.

**My Bestsellers.** It declared.

That was obnoxious... but it was also the name of that bookstore on the way to Helen's Bakery. Dad had told me once that it had used to be a huge, chain store... til' Barnes and Noble was born anyway.

This little key only meant one thing. I had to get past the big uglies- **again.**

"Dammit." I grumped. Stomping past the rotten, ugly little lawn gnome- I shot it twice in the 'head'- just out of spite.

Sighing in irritation, I ducked into the open hallway. The cylinder creatures took one tentative sniff, and immediately began to shamble my way. They were on the other side of the level.

"Ha!" I taunted. "You can't catch me!"

Yeah, I have an immature streak- so?

Unlocking the bookstore's front entrance, I strolled smugly inside, and was startled by what I found...

**: AUTHOR'S NOTES : Yeah, I know- this chapter was really kind of short and half-assed, but I haven't updated in about, oh- FOREVER- so I wanted to get the ball rolling again. FYI: Heather (in my fic anyway...) Is having a teenage 'denial of mortality' thing for the time being, hence the still being a smart-ass. I always thought- in the game- that the whole thing didn't really hit home for her until she got home to Harry. (Trying not to drop spoilers for those who don't know!)**

**Anyways- READ AND REVIEW- I crave it oh, so much... Sigh.**

**: SPECIAL THANKS : Literary Alchemist- who's getting probably more of these than he can shake a stick at. But hey- the dude is good at the motivating!**


End file.
